


Making You Work

by amageish



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Office, Ambiguous/Open Ending, Dialogue Heavy, F/F, Past Suicide Attempt, Post-Break Up, Reconciliation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-30
Updated: 2021-01-30
Packaged: 2021-03-16 06:14:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,584
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29077683
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/amageish/pseuds/amageish
Summary: Years after high school and their college-imposed break-up, Marianne and Hilda end up working in the same office, alongside many of their friends. Hilda's ready to start their relationship again and care for her darling Mari!...Modern AU and Office AU.
Relationships: Marianne von Edmund/Hilda Valentine Goneril
Kudos: 19





	Making You Work

Hilda sat down at the coffee shop, giddy with excitement. She was getting dinner with Marianne Von Edmund! It was nothing she hadn’t done dozens, if not hundreds of times before; however, it had been over a decade since it last happened. Marianne had been working with her and Claude for months now, but she hadn’t offered Hilda take her out on anything resembling a date since high school.

And Hilda was ready. She put on her best dress, did her make-up excellently, and dug out her old DVD collection from her closet for extra measure. By the end of the night, Marianne and Hilda would be cuddling and watching Tangled just like the old days.

Marianne walked up to her table. She wasn't exactly dressed for a date, Hilda noticed, but her everyday attire was cute enough anyway (a button-down dress shirt paired with a pair of dress pants). And, hey, if she didn't have any date outfits, then that just meant Hilda could take her shopping, which was another of her favourite things to do with Marianne, after cuddling.

Marianne sat down and gave a polite nod. “Hello... Glad you could meet me here, Hilda.”

“And it’s wonderful to see you too, Mari! You know, I’ve been waiting for you to work up the courage to ask me out again.”

“You… were?” Marianne replied, nervously.

“Of course I was! Don’t sell yourself short, Marianne. You’re a beautiful girl.” 

Marianne sighed. “That isn’t what I meant… Hilda, I need to tell you something important.”

“Of course! I’m all ears, Marianne.”

Hilda's heart began to flutter. was Marianne going to propose? A silly thought, as they broke up a decade ago, but the fantasy of Marianne bravely returning into her life and going down on one knee had ran its way through Hilda's head dozens of times.

“Hilda. I’m transferring to the B-Team.”

A beat of unexpected silence. 

“You’re… you’re leaving our office?”

“Yes.”

“Why?” Hilda asked. She wasn't angry - yet - just confused. “Did something happen?”

Marianne sighed. “I just need a change of pace.”

“You could talk to Claude, you know! I’m sure he’d be willing to change your workload up if it meant keeping you.”

“I spoke to him already. He supports my transfer. Honestly, I wouldn’t be too surprised if he talked Edelgard into accepting me…”

Hilda paused. This hurt. It hurt more than it should.

It was a co-worker transferring. That’s all. That happens all the time. Not every worker will work in every office. Sometimes people get tired. Sometimes people get promoted. 

But it sounds like Marianne sought it out. She wanted to leave. She wanted to leave Hilda. Hilda must have done something wrong. Her eyes began to water. “I’m sorry, Marianne.”

“Why are you sorry?”

“I could have done more to make you feel welcome… I wasn’t there for you enough and now you’re leaving…”

“Hilda. You are fine. You have done more than enough.” Marianne took a deep breath. “In fact… That’s part of the problem.”

“The… problem?” Hilda said, sniffling.

“Every day I go to work and I’m reminded of our high school. It’s wonderful that the Goddess brought us all back together, but it's just so tiring. I am constantly reminded of a person I used to be - a person I no longer am. I love you - and all of our friends - but I’ve changed! I’m not the loner who cried in the bathroom reading the Book of Serios anymore. I’ve got a degree. I’ve got a therapist and I take antidepressants. I’ve got hobbies and friends and a rich, fulfilling life. Did you know I have a horse now?”

“You do?” Hilda said. “That’s great to hear! Just like the one you wanted?”

“Yes.” Marianne replied, smiling nostalgically. “However, I haven’t been able to share that with you - any of you - as you continue to treat me like a kid.”

Hilda paused. She had just gotten used to never asking Marriage about her life - when talking to her, it had always been best to avoid accidentally opening wounds by discussing pop culture and the news instead. “We don’t mean to...”

“I know you don’t mean to… I’m not blaming you for anything. It’s just hard to work with people so intimately familiar with my… baggage.”

“But it’s fine, Marianne! We love you. We can take care of you and treat you the way that you deserve after -”

“That’s exactly what I mean! I love you all too, but you can be… smothering.”

Hilda paused. “How so?”

“I once knocked over my pencil holder and you ran -  _ ran _ \- across the entire office to pick it up for me. You won’t even respond to Claude’s emails promptly, but you run across the office when I have to pick up a handful of pens?”

“I just… didn’t want you to have to face it by yourself?”

“Hilda. It was a pile of writing utensils. I can handle that.”

“But how was I supposed to know that? You’ve had worse reactions to other things…”

“Yes. I have _had_ them. Do you see my point? I’m Marriane von Edmund, a software developer and an equestrian. I read a lot of books and play puzzle games on my phone. I like hiking and exploring museums. However, you all still treat me as nothing more than poor suicidal Mari.”

Hilda’s breath froze. Suicidal. She hadn’t ever heard Marianne be that direct about it and they dated for years. It was always just "the time that Marianne was willing to let the Goddess take her, but she  


“I… didn’t realize we were hurting you.”

“It’s not your fault. It’s second-nature for you.”

“I hope you realize we would never -”

“I know. It’s fine. I mean, it’s not fine… but I understand.”

“Okay…” Hilda sighed. “So, the B-Team?”

Marianne nodded. “I think they’ll be good for me. Edelgard isn’t exactly approachable, but the people there are generally very nice.”

In spite of everything, Hilda feels herself fume with jealousy. 

When in doubt, deflect to comedy.

“Well, I hope you don’t have any regrets when you’re trading me as office manager for Hubert!”

“I’m sure. He may actually manage our office.”

“Are you implying I don’t?” Hilda asked, with a knowing laugh.

Marriane’s face became serious. “Hilda… Forgive me if I am sticking my nose where it doesn’t belong -”

“Mari, you know you can ask me anything.” Marianne shot Hilda a look.

“Thanks... Hilda… Are you happy?”

Hilda did a double-take. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Do you enjoy your job? Do you feel fulfilled? Or... are you just following Claude around?”

“I’m a loyal employee. I’m just lazy. You know me!”

“I don’t know…” Marianne paused, contemplatively. “You’ve always been ‘lazy,’ but you kicked butt as the musical’s costume designer back in the day. You don’t seem nearly as invested in booking and managing everyone’s appointments and meetings”

Hilda laughed awkwardly. “Look, Mari, I’ve had passions, but I love my job. I love working under Claude and he lets me get away with far more shit than any other boss would… I’m happy.”

“Mmm.” Marianne replied, obviously not convinced. “I’m wondering about your brother.”

“Um. My brother?”

“Yeah. You're intimidated by his success, aren’t you? So you pretend to be lazy and undervalue yourself as a way to deflect. Throw the first punch against yourself so nothing anyone says will hurt you.”

“How… how did you come to that conclusion.”

“I think I figured it out in University. Hindsight makes things more obvious.”

“Ah.”

“So it’s true?”

Hilda frowned. “Mari, you keep making me sad tonight. It doesn't fit with my aesthetic.”

“We can change the topic if you’d like…”

“No. No… It’s fine. I just… don’t know what to say. I’ve been lazy for so long; I don’t exactly remember when it started.”

“Would you like to talk to someone about it?”

Hilda smiled and leaned forward. “Well now, Mari, are you inviting me on a second date? You’re such a charmer…”

“I actually was recommending you go to therapy.”

“Oh.” Hilda took a deep breath. “That’s less exciting.”

“I’m willing to date you Hilda. But I want to date  _ you _ . Hilda, the girl with dreams and hopes for her life that are, I assume, not entirely located in Claude’s shadow. I don’t want to end up in a relationship where we’re both just living in the past.”

“But the past was so simple…”

“Maybe. But it was also misguided. I don’t need a big strong Hilda to protect me from bullies anymore, Hilda. I want to get to know you - not this projection born of your insecurity and my desire for a hero.”

“And my desire to be a hero…” Hilda muttered softly. “So, what do you propose we do?”

“Find yourself, Hilda. Go to therapy. Explore careers, hobbies, and follow your passions! Take night classes if you have to - heck, go back to college all over again. And once you know what you want, then we can meet again and see where we are.”

“That’s… a lot of wok, Mari.”

“It is. You inspired me to improve myself. Now it’s your turn to do the work.”

Hilda took a deep breath and smiled. “Okay. I’m not quitting my job or anything, but I’ll start looking into stuff… I’ll figure my life out. But you’re paying for pizza tonight, okay? I’ll get you back in 12 years or whatever.”

Marianne laughed and smiled. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! I feel like Marianne's character growth is a bit underrated, so I wanted to give an adult Marianne one-shot a shot... I'm not amazed with how this turned out, but I got my goal of a twist on a typical Marianne/Hilda dynamic. Let me know what you think in the comments!


End file.
